Theosophy: a brief introduction

A more formal inquiry into Theosophy. ~ Dara

Introduction

The Theosophical Movement was a major religious movement that drew
upon mystical sources to bring about a true cross-fertilization of
ideas between the East and West. Theosophy has taken many forms and
many faces over the three centuries of its influence. In 1928 at its
height, the Theosophical Society (the major exponent of Theosophical
thought in the West) boasted some 45,000 members worldwide (Johnson, p.
9) Theosophy had a deep and lasting impact upon mysticism in the West,
as most New Age ideas can claim Theosophical ancestry.

Let's explore the history of the Theosophical Movement, as this was
a major focus of Theosophical thought in the 19th and 20th centuries,
beginning with the major events and personalities involved in the
movement. Next, a description of the major concepts of Theosophy,
including an analysis of the elements of mysticism embodied in this
system. Then, a brief discussion of some of the movements and schools
of thought inspired by the Theosophical Society. Finally, we shall
consider some implications and conclusions drawn from Theosophical
study.

Theosophy is a strange mixture of Eastern and Western religions,
including but not limited to: Egyptology, Hinduism, Sufism, Sikhism,
Buddhism, esoteric Judaism (Kabbalah) and Mystic Christianity. Its
ecumenical focus brought together teachers of many different traditions
in a sense of holism and brotherhood, in keeping with the ideals of
Theosophy. As such, Theosophy can be seen as mysticism with a political
agenda, as the world of action is fully engaged as the means for
self-perfection. The self is changed and purified through changing and
purifying the world.

The sources of the key concepts of Theosophy reflect an inner mystic
tradition that has moved throughout history. The etymology of
"Theosophy" is theos - meaning divine, and sophia - meaning wisdom.
Theosophy, then translates as "Divine Wisdom." In Theosophy, the
aspirants seek to gain divine wisdom by turning within and drawing on
innate sources of knowledge, as well as external sources. Because of
this strong mystical bent, there is a strong subjective element that
has led to misunderstandings, schisms and charges of fraud. Much
Theosophical material is steeped in subjective mystic revelations of an
inner world that cannot be demonstrated by usual means, yet their
message has appealed to and inspired multitudes down to our present
day. Ultimately, Theosophists say that the verity of their claims must
be grounded in personal experience of these states.

History

Theosophy has its roots in concepts gleaned from the French
Enlightenment era. It includes a universal view of history, mythology
and world religions without the deleterious effects of fundamentalism
and Christian dominance (Johnson, p. 2). The age of revolutions,
Freemasonry and Mesmerism all marked the emerging Theosophical
movement, imparting the ideals of equality of access (as opposed to
clerical elitism), unity of humanity and a taste for esoteric
teachings. This nucleus was further nurtured by the Spiritualism
Movement of the 19th century, in which mediumship and channeling was
widely popular.

A seminal figure in the Theosophical Movement was a Russian emigre
known as Madame Helena Petronva Blavatsky. Madame Blavatsky, or HPB as
she was known in Theosophic circles, made a name for herself as a
travelogue and medium. She traveled to the "Orient" and studied with
several masters, gurus and teachers before returning to Europe to found
the Theosophical Society with Henry Steel Olcott, a prominent
Rosicrucian, in 1875. HPB was said to be an initiate of several
esoteric orders, including: the Masonic Rite of Memphis, the Secret
Teachings of the Druze (an offshoot of Isma 'ili' Shi'ism), as well as
a likely member of the Carbonari. Her erudition, spiritual pedigree and
charisma attracted thousands to the mystical movement. HPB claimed to
be in contact with certain "Hidden Masters" who ceaselessly worked for
the union of humanity and divinity. HPB saw herself as the agent of
these masters, also known as the Great White Brotherhood (see Part III
for more on this), and primary guardian of the true occult tradition.
(Johnson, p. 4) Using her psychic powers, HPB claimed to have personal
access to the masters, who's instructions she channeled for the benefit
of humanity. At the end of 1878, HPB and Olcott moved the Theosophical
Society's world headquarters to Bombay, India.

In 1885, HPB was accused of fraud by a prominent member of the
Society of Psychical Research, by the name of Richard Hodgson. This
controversy caused a schism within the Theosophical Society, but did
not lessen the movements wide appeal for long.

In 1888, HPB founded the "Esoteric Section" of the Theosophical
Society to avoid attempts by Colonel Olcott to take over the Society.
It is during this time that HPB wrote the three tomes for which she is
best known – The Secret Doctrine, Isis Unveiled and The
Voice of
Silence. These books describe the holistic worldview of Theosophy,
interweaving myth, mysticism and ancient teachings, which were to fuel
the occult and New Age movements of the 20th century.

Upon her death in 1891, HPB named Dr. Annie Besant and William Q.
Judge as co-heads of the Esoteric Section of Theosophical Society.
Annie Besant and William Q. Judge had a very public falling out, during
which the American chapter of the Theosophical Society split in 1898.
In 1907, Colonel Olcott died, leaving Dr. Annie Besant in charge of the
world-wide Theosophical Society. Dr. Besant brought in Charles W.
Leadbeater, who further mythologized and hierarchialized HPB's and
Annie Besant's mediumship. In that same year, Leadbeater discovered a
young man, Jiddu Krishnamurti, who he proclaimed to be the long awaited
World Teacher, who would bring enlightenment to a blinded humanity.
Krishnamurti was endorsed by Dr. Besant and the Theosophical Society,
who undertook Krishnamurti's education and preparation for his life's
work.

In 1929, Krishnamurti denounced the claims of the Theosophical
Society that he was the anticipated World Teacher at the height of a
messianic craze. Krishnamurti denied the claims of Dr. Besant and
Leadbeater, stating he was not a savior. Yet, Krishnamurti did accept
the role of guru, even thought he spoke out against the need for any
other guru than the inner guide, which each person has subjectively
within. Krishnamurti rejected a belief in hidden masters and world
teachers, but allowed the faithful Theosophists to attend him. There
were some allegations of sexual misconduct of Krishnamurti with members
of the Theosophical Society. But these charges did not diminish
Krishnamurti's popularity through to the 1980s. (Johnson, p. 11)

HPB, founder of the Theosophical Society, asserted the existence of
a mystic hierarchical brotherhood who worked to raise the level of
consciousness on Earth. Krishnamurti, the hand-picked World Teacher,
denies their existence, instead putting the onus on each individual to
actualize their own beings through their own efforts and inner wisdom.
So, do these masters really exist or are they imaginary creations of a
mystic Russian madwoman? The subjectivity of the material make it
difficult to make a rational assessment. As HPB and Krishnamurti both
would probably say, each person must discover for themselves the truth
of these claims....

Key Concepts

I have distilled nine key mystical concepts of Theosophy. This list
is by no means comprehensive or complete. But it will provide a rough
overview of some of the major tenets of Theosophy. Most if not all of
these concepts will be familiar to many mystical aspects of all world
religions. I shall endeavor to illustrate connections between
Theosophical concepts and the mystic concepts found in other
traditional approaches to mysticism.

1) Unity of Life

All life proceeds from one boundless, eternal,
unknowable source. The Universe is seen as a living, organic,
intelligent, divine whole – the One that becomes Many. This is similar
to the Nature Mystics view of the oneness of nature and the Hindu view
that the entire Universe emanates from the one god, Brahma. All things
are perceived to be manifestations of a single essence – God. As such,
all things, material and non-material, are seen as extensions of God,
whether conscious of their divinity or not. This single essence
permeates the cosmos, granting life, consciousness and growth to rocks,
bugs, animals, humans, planets, solar systems and galaxies. This idea
was the progenitor of the Gaia Principle of the New Age movement, in
which the planet is seen as a living organism. (Farthing, p.1)

2) The Law of Cycles

The world exists in alternating cycles of
manifestation and rest. Every evolutionary motion is followed by a
period of rest, in which energy is gathered for the next motion. The
cycle consists of what is called the Arc of Descent, or the movement of
spirit into matter, and the Arc of Ascent, or the movement of matter
into spirit. These cycles are akin to the in and out of the breath, as
the Universe folds itself into manifestation and releases into
consciousness. In Hinduism, they correspond to the Days and Nights of
Brahma, in which the Universe is dreamed into existence when Brahma
sleeps, but disappears upon the god's awakening. (Judge, p. 3)

3) Progressive Unfoldment of Consciousness

All things are evolving
to greater levels of consciousness, be they mineral, plant, animal,
human, planets, suns, solar systems, galaxies or universes. As all
things are enbued with the one essence, so that single essence seeks
ever higher expression. This corresponds to the idea of "climbing the
Tree of Life" in Kabbalism (Jewish mysticism), in which all things are
working, consciously or not, towards the attainment of the next
sephiroth, the next rung on the ladder of evolution of consciousness.

4) Karma and Reincarnation

This principle derives out of Hinduism
and Buddhism, and holds that all beings deserve their fate through
their choices and actions. This is a cosmic law of cause and effect. It
is an impersonal law that operates similarly to the law of gravity, not
subject to interference by human or God. All choices and actions
determine the conditions of life not only in this incarnation, but in
future incarnations as well. This concept leads to an emphasis on
morality, as all choices will have a result, so it is in one's
self-interest to treat others as they would be treated. It is through
the principle of Karma, enacted and fulfilled through multiple lives,
that the evolving soul is purified and transformed.

5) Personal Responsibility

As we saw in the preceding concept,
ethics and altruism is emphasized as in one's own best interest. This
principle is seen in some form in all religions, and is summed up in
Christianity as the Golden Rule, and in Judaism as Hillel's admonition
to "do not to that which you would not have others do unto you."
Ethics
is seen as a means to awaken the higher self. This precept is radically
egalitarian, as each individual is considered to have equal access to
inner wisdom, without need to rely on priests or intermediaries.
Universal brotherhood is based on the holism of the Universe. It is
each individual's responsibility to do their part in helping the
Universe to evolve through working on their own personal evolution.
There is no separation between self and others, so that service is seen
as an opportunity for personal growth and evolution through willing
sacrifice. This concept is widespread in the New Age movement.
(Farthing, p. 4)

6) Worlds within Worlds

The One manifests in multiple forms on
infinite scales. The Universe is seen as an endless series of
interpenetrating and interacting levels. This idea is very similar to
the Four Worlds of the Kabbalah, in which each world has its own Tree
of Life, and inside of each sephiroth is another tree, in an infinite
regress. This idea of a multi-layered cosmos is also found in
Gnosticism and Mystic Christianity. (Anon. p.4)

7) Analogy

Because of the unitary nature of the Universe, the same
laws apply throughout the whole cosmos. "As Above, So Below, but like
unto another manner." The same general principles permeate the
Universe. Humanity is the Microcosm to God's Macrocosm. It is this
principle of correspondence that allows humanity to come to know the
nature of God through self-knowledge. This concept is found in all
traditional forms of mysticism, although it is modified in Buddhism,
which does not acknowledge the existence of a deity or a self. In
Buddhism, one can come to know the true nature of reality, apart from
samsara (or illusion) by turning within.

8) Hierarchy

The cosmos consists of a multi-leveled Universe, with
a top-down power structure. On the planet Earth, the hierarchy consists
of the Great White Brotherhood, a fraternity of inner adepts who have
dedicated their lives to the project of evolution on this planet. The
Great White Brotherhood shares its wisdom with initiates (such as HPB
or Dr. Annie Besant), who then pass this wisdom on to the rest of
humanity. This is very similar to Christian and Kabbalistic models of
the Kingdoms of Heaven with the Orders of the Angels and the Four
Worlds. (Achad, p. 28) This concept is prevalent in Gnosticism and
Hermeticism. It is this doctrine that Krishnamurti found particularly
distasteful and forcefully rejected, as he regarded this a clerical
attempt to seek control over the spiritual progress of members of the
Theosophical Society. (Johnson, p. 13)

9) The Nature of Humanity

Theosophical thought holds that humanity
is in a privileged position on Earth, as only human (so far as we know)
can self-reflect and thus have inner access to the higher orders of
consciousness. Human nature is seen as a trinity of: 1) Body, 2) Soul
and 3) Spirit. The Body is the realm of the senses, expressed by life
energy and the lower mind. An aspirant must have a sound body and lower
mind in order to reach any higher levels. The Soul is characterized as
the higher mind, or the reincarnating ego that distills the lessons of
multiple lives. The Spirit is the immortal monad/atman, which never
departs from God. It is through this monad, or divine spark, that each
being has direct access to the Whole (God). It is the Objective "I."
According to Theosophic thought, we must have knowledge of these higher
worlds in order to truly actualize our humanity. (Steiner, p. 18)

Offshoots and Successors

Many mystical and esoteric groups found their origins in Theosophy.
I will name only a few known in the West.

Heirs to Theosophy include (but is not limited to):

The Rites of
Memphis and Mizram

The Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor

The
Rosicrucian Society of America

The Ordo Templi Orientis (Aleister
Crowley's Hermetic group)

The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
(founded by Israel Regardie)

The Seekers of Inner Light (made
famous by Dion Fortune and Gareth Knight)

Others less directly related but who
share many similar Theosophical concepts are the Fourth Way schools
founded by George I. Gurdjieff, the Seth Material channeled by Jane
Roberts, as well as all other "channeled" teachings rife in the New Age
movement, including the Course in Miracles, Abraham-Hicks, J.Z.
Knight's Ramtha and Lazarus.

Conclusions and Implications

Like Krishnamurti, it becomes difficult to accept the existence of a
divine hierarchy when those mouthpieces to whom God entrusted His
wisdom are proven untrustworthy. But there are Sufi masters, known as
the "Men of Blame," who do everything they can to discredit themselves,
while maintaining the highest levels of consciousness. This is done for
the benefit of their students, to prevent their followers from becoming
too dependent upon them. In Zen Buddhism, this principle is found in
the famous koan, "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him."
This
could be applied to HPB and Dr. Annie Besant, as well as Krishnamurti.
And even if it was not a conscious effort on their part, if the
hypothesis of an intelligent universe is followed, then it would seem
to be a sometimes necessary step in the process if the students are to
be encouraged to seek their own inner wisdom, without the mediation of
teachers or gurus.

Theosophy popularized both mysticism and occultism, as both were
seen as valid means of reaching the "Inner Planes." But it also
discredited mysticism and occultism, as the movement's leaders endured
accusations of fraud, and many promises made by prominent Theosophists,
such as Dr. Annie Besant, failed to materialize.

Whether or not we accept the divine status of the channels through
which this information became known, there is much to commend in
Theosophy. The emphasis of unity, personal responsibility and ethics
make it a practical belief system, worthy of serious consideration. The
concept of interpenetrating planes of existence is shared by so many
different forms of mysticism that it seems to be a fairly common mystic
observation (i.e., so many mystics have had visions of these levels and
the hierarchies that inhabit them, that it seems to be a key feature of
mysticism in general), and so is unremarkable. Science is catching up
with this idea with the Gaia Hypothesis, that holds that the planet is
a network of interpenetrating ecosystems which combine to create an
larger, intelligent system. The progressive unfoldment of consciousness
gives aspirants hope for the future, as promised by the laws of karma
and rebirth. We can keep trying until we finally get it right.

Theosophy is a truly ecumenical system that incorporates many of the
best elements from East and West. Regardless of what is thought of the
leadership of the movement, Theosophy allowed some of the first serious
cultural cross-fertilization between the East and West. It is this
movement that set the groundwork for the later blossoming of the
Hindu/Christian hybrids of the 1960s, such as Bede Griffiths and Ram
Dass. It is more fit for the active Western lifestyle, as all
experiences are seen as grist for the consciousness mill. Aspirants
need not withdraw from the world in order to work on their
spirituality, indeed, the events and demands of life provide the
opportunities for the application of Theosophic principles.

But if we are to take the Theosophical teachings seriously, then a
whole cosmos of consciousness is "out there", awaiting our
explorations. But only if we have the courage "To Know, To Will, To
Dare, To Be Silent."